Farmers were bracing for heavy rain on Wednesday night, but by late afternoon, only a dribble made its way into the rain gauges.
District croppers, wanting to see their grain and oil crops given a boost, were hoping for a substantial fall.
“We could take another inch (25 mm) and I wouldn't say no, to two inches,” Caniambo farmer Richard Wall said on Wednesday afternoon.
He pointed out that the recent burst of hot weather and the longer days were drying out the soil and the flourishing crops were demanding more moisture to fill their heads.
By 4 pm, the moisture had barely touched the bottom of the automatic rain gauge operated by the Bureau of Meteorology at Shepparton, although 6 mm was recorded at Tatura, 1.2 mm at Yarrawonga and 2.4 mm at Mangalore.
The bureau is forecasting a cloudy day on Thursday with a very high chance of rain, easing to showers during the morning.
There is a chance of a thunderstorm in the morning and afternoon. Winds could increase to 30 to 35 km/h in the middle of the day.
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